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Once there are several more films and a new Bond I very much doubt it. It's an absolutely valid entry in the canon, but it has no more about it than any other standard entry to warrant 'cult' status. In most cases it's lacking. I imagine it will only remain a favourite for those who genuinely love it and for the rest, passable to poor. I don't imagine it'll be reappraised in OHMSS fashion. That's masterful film making that was ahead of the curve. QoS isn't.
In the old forums I once started a thread drawing comparisons between the two. It has many elements similar to DN: the setting, Greene and No's ideological stance, etc.
Knowing all that, I loved the QOS-plot immensely. And as a lifelong Bond-Fan I liked everything else as well. Paying hommage to OHMSS at the beginning. Great song by White. Punchy feeling, no time to loose. Great action sequences one after another. So many memorable details - engine start in PTS, bus - jump, a fall trough glass roof, and that gunshot on post-title sequence (breathless!), the death of Slate, lively diverse musical score (best Arnold's score with nice themes), motorbike override, injury on beautiful Camille's back, villain which needs no showing off because he is too powerful already (very european style) played very well by Amalric, disgusting Medrano, the poor every day life of south America, young unexperienced character of sexy Strawberry Fields, whole Tosca sequence, Mathis' thoughts of relativity, tensed dogfight, giant water reserve, no water for locals, guitar theme on the road, best Bond - Photography ever (thank you Roberto Shäfer) , Interior-hommage to Ken Adam in the Hotel de las dunas, fast gutty finale and finally most sinister (Yusuf-) CODA of a Bond Films ever (Guy Hamilton-Bonds all had Codas) with a famous "Sit Down" finishing CR, necklace in the snow. I saw this movie about 20 times and will probably watch it more. It's much easier to watch QOS again for all reasons I watch Bond movies again and again - which I unfortunately can't do with Skyfall. Already watching SF in cinema, I missed the art of QOS action sequences. SF has other qualities which are original to Bond world (listen to a Mendes-Commentary on a BR/DVD, it's great!), but if I want a straight modern Bond Movie QOS is the one for sure following Dr.No, FRWL, OHMSS, FYEO, LTK and TND. I would very much like for Forster to make another one, but this time with a finished script (!) and 6 months instead of 8 weeks to edit.
I don't think it is. It's lauded around these parts by a great many people. There are far better films that are nowhere near as fawned over as QoS.
That title belongs to A View to a Kill.
If there is one in the whole franchise,that would profit from a directors (final,producers,masters,whatever)cut it is this one.
There is no other bond movie in which so little would have meant so much!
Didn't we have this before? You see there is a reason why I don't contribute to the Skyfall appreciation thread. ;)
I'm not knocking QoS, I like it. I merely think it's fawned over to excess by some. Films like LALD and TSWLM are far superior, but no one feels the need to be overtly mawkish about them. Perhaps it's because they stand on their own and aren't in need of apologists to reinforce their impact.
A fair point RC7. I dont see the same level of apologists ready to stand up for other flawed entries in the series such as YOLT and MR.
Seems to me there is a snobbishness here that because of QOS's pretensions to be serious and arty people think it should escape the criticism of other lackustre Bond films.
Sorry to say it but YOLT and MR hold together better and are more competently made films than QOS.
The great shame is that QOS couldve been great but due largely to the script difficulties (although a lot of blame should also reside with Forster for his 'bullet from a gun' pacing crap, the editing and minor gripes like insisting MK Dons do the title sequence) it is alas a missed opportunity. This is where I think the sadness should lie - I dont really see how people can defend it to the point of calling it a great entry. Its plainly not, but it could have been - thats the tragedy.
That's because there is no possible defending for YOLT(apart from some lovely colourful looks). It's the movie that gave James Bond such a nonsense reputation with so many intelligent people and - worst of all- made Mike Myers possible. That's all to be said about it,period!
About MR, well lotsa people are very liberal in their praise for its splendid cinematography, epic soundtrack and one of the most exiting PTS in the franchise, so I don't quite see your point.
:))
I have to admit I don't quite get that one. Would you care to explain?
No matter. I was just saying that I believe you are in error because I and many other Bond fans see much that is worthwhile & entertaining in YOLT despite some of the OTT moments.
:)>-
Pros:
-A great Barry score
-THAT volcano set
-The action inside the volcano
-Charles Gray
-That magnificent shot of the rooftop fight
-The Osato HQ fight
-The death of Aki
-Q and Little Nellie
-The PTS (I like it very much)
-Brandt meets the piranhas
Cons:
-Connery
-Rear projection (yes, I know it's present in almost all Bond films in the Connery/Moore eras, but I find YOLT to be a prolific offender)
-Lapses in logic at times ("A drop in the ocean")
-Anything to do with Connery looking like an absolute buffoon trying to pass as a Japanese fisherman (geeze, and some find the Moore films to be cringeworthy. I find Bond goes Japanese far worse than anything from the Moore era. This is DAD level stuff).
YOLT is definitely below average for me, as it sits around 17th place.
Arty? Well it depends where you get your art from I suppose. I just find it entertaining and actually a lot less up it's own arse than a lot of other recent entries?
Faux 'arty' and pretentious? Surely you're referring to Skyfall. Any one for Turner or a bit of Tennyson? FFS! Talk about tedious pretentious middle brow drivel - SF has it in bucket loads.
And I'll happily defend YOLT, and regularly do on these threads. One of my personal favourites.
Just need to rewatch MR now.
Sure I did, but never in English. Actually a good excuse to rewatch this great movie during the weekend, when I think about it.
Please do not insult the brilliant FYEO with comparing it to Quantum of Bourne, please. It does not belong in the class of greatness where FYEO resides. ;)
Add in the some neat, effective action scenes and cool Euro villains and allies and there is more than a little in common. Columbo seems like a similar character to Mathis as well - in the way he's written and cast.
So now you are telling me that QoB is an attempt to achieve the same message as FYEO. the idea might be there but at no moment in the movie does it match FYEO in anything. While FYEO is a finished product that delivered a brilliant spy story with Roger Moore starring, QoB feels unfinished, unpolished, copied from a better executed series of movies, pretentious, badly edited (ravished by a pack of wolves I might say). Which is the large difference between FYEO and this attempt at a movie, the suaveness versus whatever the heck they really wanted with this vehicle. IMHO they should ban Forster ever coming near the movie again. rewrite the script, shoot added scenes, re-edit the movie, write a decent title song and add a decent composer of the NON-Arnold variety. Then the movie might be worth anybodies time.
I still remember the amount of people that had left the cinema during the break, and the cinema owner telling me that this had happened almost every night. If a Bond movie fails to entertain people it is a badly made movie.
Moderator: Removed profanity